Treasury Questions - Credit Insurance

Treasury Questions

26-Mar-2009

Mr. Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (LD): For many world-class textile businesses in my constituency, the lack of credit insurance is now a very serious issue. In addition to the monitoring that the Chief Secretary is doing, will she look at the increasing amount of information that we are getting to the effect that the banks are restricting their own facilities and their lending to these companies because there is no credit insurance, which means these businesses are now feeling a double whammy from which they are getting no relief at all?

Yvette Cooper: The hon. Gentleman makes an important point, and that is exactly why we are in detailed discussions with the trade credit insurance companies, and also why we have been setting out a range of measures with the banks to support increased lending. The global credit crunch means there has been a big drop in foreign bank lending, for example, in the UK. Nevertheless, it is right to do everything we can to increase lending and support, which is why we now have legally binding commitments with the banks that have signed up to the asset protection scheme, in order to increase lending this year by tangible amounts.

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